Precoro

JUNE 3, 2025

Businesses often use it in retail and purchasing. Category management isn’t just another procurement trend. It’s a way for companies to group similar goods or services (like IT infrastructure, facilities, or raw materials) and manage them holistically instead of handling every purchase in isolation.

Manufacturing Procurement 45

Manufacturing Procurement Procurement Analytics Procurement Solutions Material Savings 45

Locus

JANUARY 9, 2025

According to a recent update from the World Health Organization (WHO), HMPV is quietly spreading through key manufacturing regions, echoing the operational challenges we faced during the pandemic. HMPV is causing significant disruptions in supply chain operations, particularly in manufacturing hubs across Asia. Whats Happening?

Supply Chain Software 59

Supply Chain Software Sourcing Strategies Optimal Sourcing Modeling 59

Supply Chain Brain

JULY 14, 2025

Our latest e-book, Unlocking Fulfillment Potential, will introduce you to the recently launched Zebra Symmetry™ Fulfillment ecosystem, which was engineered specifically to boost your profits. Zebra Navigating the Future of Demand Forecasting More from this author Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter!

Cost Reduction Strategies 45

Cost Reduction Strategies Optimal Sourcing Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software 45

BlueYonder

JUNE 23, 2025

Leaders in logistics today: there are pressures to reduce labor costs, exceed service levels, balance inventory in the right locations to match demand, collaborate with suppliers and carriers, and connect all your decisions among your operations. Explore our e-book today to begin your transformation.

Logistics Network Optimization Software 98

Logistics Network Optimization Software Optimal Sourcing Waste Reduction Modeling 98

Supply Chain Game Changer

JUNE 18, 2025

It must address various demands, including indirect procurement requests, project and manufacturing requirements, and external customer demands. Through the analysis of large datasets, companies can anticipate and adjust to changes in demand, effectively manage inventory shortages, and optimize their workforce.

Waste Reduction 59

Waste Reduction Inventory Reduction Cost Reduction Strategies Sourcing Strategies 59

Cathy Roberson

MARCH 17, 2025

Consumers have embraced e-commerce for price comparisons, ease of purchase anytime and anywhere, and for those participating in subscription services such as Amazon Prime, free shipping, and other benefits. According to Alibaba's announcement, "This will allow SMEs to directly book transparent, cost-effective shipping with a single click."

Logistics Network Optimization Software 64

Logistics Network Optimization Software Supply Chain Network Software Freight Purchasing Skills 64

IQMS

JULY 29, 2022

As a manufacturing business grows, production schedulers juggle more complex customer orders, expedited orders, backlogs, budgeting time for equipment refurbishment, container deliveries, logistics, and supply chain allocations. They also include items manufactured internally and through third-party vendors and sub-assemblies.

Forecasting Software 52

Forecasting Software Demand Planning Software Forecasting Supply Chain Planning Software 52

Logistics Bureau

DECEMBER 22, 2024

Ive seen KPI “packs” the size of phone books, and even KPI sets circulated as a monthly magazine that no one reads. In many cases, your distribution operation will incur unwanted costs to manage returns of damaged items and deliver replacements to the customers (not to mention the cost of writing off damaged inventory).

KPI 74

KPI Agile and Lean Supply Chain Supply Chain Strategy Supply Chain 74

IQMS

SEPTEMBER 12, 2023

During the American Revolution, paper was in short supply as the popularity of books and newspapers exploded. Manufacturers have been trying to prevent these experiences since the dawn of products. The meaning of MRP is simple: Material requirements planning is a system for managing production inventory. And do I need to use it?”

Supply Chain Planning Software 52

Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Planning Scenario Planning Predictive Analytics Software 52

Precoro

MARCH 27, 2025

According to McKinsey & Company, procurement accounts for 50% to 80% of a company’s cost base. That’s why organizations zero in on strategies to achieve procurement cost reduction.    The key thing to remember is that cost reduction in procurement isn’t just about slashing expenses.

Cost Reduction Strategies 45

Cost Reduction Strategies Price Reduction Expense Reduction Vendor Strategies 45

Cathy Roberson

MAY 25, 2025

The report will be available free for paid Substack subscribers but I’ll provide a summary and a link to the report in case you’re interested in either purchasing it separately or paying for an anuual subscribtion to my Substack articles. Reported May 20 Let me take a moment to comment on our global sourcing strategy.

Purchasing Skills 67

Purchasing Skills Negotiating Skills Price Reduction Vendor Strategies 67

ThroughPut

JULY 14, 2025

A lot of companies need to re-examine every item that they sell and source, especially whether it makes sense to stress-test pricing or eliminate the offering altogether. After searching the entire market, we realized Ankhen was the only company that had these capabilities.

Optimal Sourcing 52

Optimal Sourcing Price Reduction Inventory Reduction Resource Reduction 52

crisp

MAY 21, 2025

In a Deloitte survey of retail professionals , 60% reported that AI tools improved their ability to forecast demand and manage inventory in 2024. Before AI can process and automate insights, organizations must overcome the hurdle of disparate, inconsistent, and often delayed data sources that prevent timely decision-making.

Inventory Reduction 40

Inventory Reduction Sourcing Strategies Cost Reduction Strategies Supply Chain Strategy 40

Supply Chain Brain

JUNE 10, 2025

Regulators including the Ministry for Industry and Information Technology recently addressed the issue of supply chain financing with the heads of major electric vehicle manufacturers on concerns the price war was becoming unsustainable. BYD took an average of 275 days to pay suppliers in 2023, Bloomberg compiled data show.

Price Reduction 59

Price Reduction Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Optimal Sourcing 59

Cathy Roberson

JUNE 9, 2025

The report will be available free for paid Substack subscribers but I’ll provide a summary and a link to the report in case you’re interested in either purchasing it separately or paying for an anuual subscribtion to my Substack articles. And we have re-upped that the pause at 30 and our booking product in. Winifred Y.

Negotiating Skills 56

Negotiating Skills Purchasing Skills Negotiate Pricing Retail 56

Supply Chain Digest

JULY 1, 2025

Ongoing disruptions in the Middle East are driving up supply chain costs across energy, transportation, insurance, inventory, and technology. Eurasian Rail Freight: Demand for rail freight between Asia and Europe has surged, leading to congestion and longer booking times. Supply Chain Digest Says. What do you say?

Gartner 41

Gartner Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Iran 41

Supply Chain Matters

JULY 3, 2025

The open question is whether June’s expansion was related solely to inventory pre-loading prior to the imposition of considerably higher global wide tariff levels. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI® reportedly rose to a value of 50.3, The HSBC India Manufacturing PMI® rose to a 14-month high level of 58.4 up from the 49.5

Manufacturing Procurement 52

Manufacturing Procurement Global Manufacturing Procurement Analytics 52

Supply Chain Digest

JULY 2, 2025

in May, but falling below the key 50 mark that separates US manufacturing expansion from contraction for 30 out of the last 32 months. Another manager in the computers and electrics sector stated that: “Tariffs continue to cause confusion and uncertainty for long-term procurement decisions. A Manufacturing PMI above 42.3,

Manufacturing Procurement 41

Manufacturing Procurement Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Logistics Network Optimization Software 41

IT Supply Chain

JUNE 23, 2025

For manufacturing teams challenged to meet aggressive cost targets while preserving reliability, sourcing partners that combine quality with sharp, transparent pricing are critical. When manufacturing teams weigh the affordable providers of custom graphic overlays, the lowest-price unit is only one piece of the puzzle.

Price Reduction 52

Price Reduction Vendor Strategies Inventory Reduction Cost Reduction Strategies 52

Supply Chain Shaman

JULY 25, 2016

It is data driven research: a deep analysis of performance, improvement and Price to Tangible Book Value of 320 companies across 31 industries for the period of 2009-2015. The source data for the analysis is public reporting of balance sheets and income statements. The Supply Chains to Admire analysis is now in its third year.

Pharmaceutical 210

Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Design Supply Chain Strategy Supply Chain Planning 210

Supply Chain Shaman

MARCH 28, 2016

The average manufacturing company’s supply chain organization is 15 years old. In our analysis, only one out of ten companies successfully improves operating margins and inventory turns at the same time. Historically, the traditional supply chain focused on improving costs. For many companies, improving results is elusive.

Pharmaceutical 195

Pharmaceutical Metrics Manufacturing Procurement Supply Chain Planning Software 195

Supply Chain Shaman

NOVEMBER 28, 2016

Shipping approximately 400 million selling units consisting of 700 million manufactured units per year, Carter’s employs about 4,000 employees at its peak. The company leverages globally sourcing strategies to buy products at a lower cost and then deploys some unique process logic to drive mass customization for retailers.

Supply Chain Design Software 195

Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Planning Software Agile and Lean Supply Chain Supply Chain Software 195

Supply Chain Shaman

JANUARY 8, 2014

My kitchen table is piled high with interviews for the upcoming book, Metrics That Matter. Writing a book is a labor of love. It is my second book. To give readers a sneak peek for the book, here I share my interview with Peter. Peter is one of sixty-five companies that I have interviewed for the book. I am behind.

Procurement Analytics 279

Procurement Analytics Manufacturing Procurement Metrics Procurement Solutions 279

Supply Chain Shaman

JANUARY 21, 2014

Companies are stuck at the intersection of inventory turns and operating margin. <In fact, so much so that I wrote a book about it.> Let’s start with these: Demand Sensing: The reduction of time to sense purchase and channel takeaway. The purchase of a product by a customer in the channel. Growth has slowed.

Supply and Demand 393

Supply and Demand Modeling Demand Planning Software Forecasting 393

Supply Chain Shaman

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

I just went live this year with a Fortune 25 company, and their factories book against their orders online. Translation of the demand forecast into planned orders to minimize manufacturing constraints. Feasible plan for tactical manufacturing planning (outside of lead time) reflecting actual constraints.

Optimal Sourcing 409

Optimal Sourcing Supply Chain Planning Software Manufacturing Procurement Modeling 409

Supply Chain Shaman

JUNE 9, 2023

The current taxonomy (or frame/models) for the engines does not address the issues of the global multinational manufacturing company. In the Global Supply Chain, there are More Constraints To Address Than Just Manufacturing. Companies need a planning solution to analyze the trade-offs between make, source, and deliver.

Optimal Sourcing 363

Optimal Sourcing Supply Chain Planning Software Supply and Demand Manufacturing Procurement 363

Supply Chain Shaman

SEPTEMBER 27, 2021

Too few companies have a holistic approach to embrace the plan, make, source, and deliver together. The problem with supplier visibility is bookended into procurement processes that have gone back, not forward over the last decade. Until then, join us for our monthly networking calls, books/reports , podcasts, and blog posts.

Supply Chain Planning Software 390

Supply Chain Planning Software Sourcing Strategies Manufacturing Procurement Supply Chain Design Software 390

Supply Chain Shaman

DECEMBER 23, 2014

At that time, manufacturers talked about customer-centric supply chains, but were afraid to aggressively adopt ecommerce strategies. Manufacturers, today, are aggressively pursuing e-commerce strategies. Get Good at Having a Real-time Perpetual Inventory Signal. No matter where inventory is, put it to work. Redefine it.

Packaging 332

Packaging Inventory Reduction Supply Chain Design Software San Francisco 332

Supply Chain Shaman

DECEMBER 30, 2021

Value networks do not interoperate and the business leader trying to track shipments must manually sync multiple data sources to get to answers. Prior to 2018, when an ocean carrier booked a shipment they had to provide a chassis. There is not a one-to-one relationship between a container and a purchase order. Be A Good Shipper.

Supply Chain Design Software 467

Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Supply Chain Software 467

Supply Chain Shaman

JUNE 5, 2013

Manufacturing is designed and planned in isolation. Comprehensive view of source, make and deliver. Most often the focus is on transportation or logistics, but does not take into consideration the trade-offs between make, source and deliver. Focus is on make, source and deliver together. Focus on the level of inventory.

Supply Chain Planning Software 255

Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Planning Supply and Demand Supply Chain Design Software 255

Supply Chain Shaman

JUNE 3, 2024

similarly, over 95% of manufacturers invested and implemented supply chain planning, but their primary tool today is Excel. How does the plan tie to the balanced scorecard of growth, inventory health, operating margin, customer service, and Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)? ” Does the Dog Hunt? (The Makes sense.

Supply Chain Planning Software 369

Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Design Software Modeling Software Forecasting Software 369

Supply Chain Shaman

JUNE 14, 2014

“The idea of the value chain is based on the process view of organizations, the idea of seeing a manufacturing (or service) organisation as a system, made up of subsystems each with inputs, transformation processes and outputs. ” Institute for Manufacturing, 2013. __. E2open last week announced the purchase of Serus.

Manufacturing Procurement 345

Manufacturing Procurement Optimal Sourcing Procurement Analytics Modeling 345

QAD

DECEMBER 10, 2019

Consider a story from Seth Stephens-Davidowitz’s book, Everybody Lies on the topic of big data. Manufacturers Thrive on Timely Information. Many manufacturers still rely on outdated processes or fail to understand the role supplier integration plays in maximizing global supply chain performance.

Manufacturing Procurement 134

Manufacturing Procurement Real-time Visibility Inventory Reduction Cost Reduction Strategies 134

Kinaxis

AUGUST 18, 2014

I watched a TED Talk video by Philip Evans, from Boston Consulting Group and shuddered to think that all our traditional fulfillment and inventory models can be drastically transformed by the “consumer”. Google wrote a great book, ZMOT, or Zero Moment of Truth. 3PL’s, Contract Manufacturing, Suppliers, Logistics providers….

Modeling 261

Modeling Supply Chain Planning Software Supply Chain Strategy Supply Chain Planning 261

GlobalTranz

JANUARY 7, 2016

Editor's Note: This is a two part series featuring Chuck Intrieri, who along with providing excellent insights over at his industry leading The Lean Supply Chain blog, is also a consultant who works with companies for Cost Reduction, Supply Chain Optimization, Logistics, Manufacturing, and 3PL Selection. What is Manufacturing?

Manufacturing Procurement 120

Manufacturing Procurement Manufacturing Eliminating Excel in Purchasing Purchasing Skills 120

Supply Chain Shaman

NOVEMBER 9, 2014

The team was organized around the functional silos of source, make and deliver. Proudly, I had led my division to have the lowest manufacturing costs with the highest Return on Assets. I also believed that this company would have the best inventory and customer service. It had been this way for over two decades. I was wrong.

Manufacturing Procurement 318

Manufacturing Procurement Optimal Sourcing Benchmarking Supply Chain Design Software 318

Supply Chain Shaman

NOVEMBER 15, 2021

Inventories in the chemical industry are at record lows: a forerunner of bad days ahead. Sitting waiting for a confirmed booking.) Especially grievous are the gaps between finance and operations, manufacturing and procurement, and the operations and commercial teams. Time For Action. We are to blame.”

Supply Chain Design Software 355

Supply Chain Design Software Supply Chain Planning Software Sourcing Strategies Supply and Demand 355